Harris and Trump campaigns using unique ways to market themselves

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Ignacio Garcia has painted over 40 murals in Tucson. His latest piece of art is a mural on the Southside that says “Vota. Juntos con Kamala,” which in Spanish means “Vote. Together with Kamala.”

He was hired by an agency that was commissioned through the Arizona Harris-Walz campaign.

Separate from the campaign, he also did a mural that says “Vote” on Fourth Avenue.

“I like to represent the Sonoran Desert and the Mexican and American culture,” Garcia said, referring to his mural.

The Sonoran Desert is represented by cacti and Sonoran blossoms. He also has the colors of the American flag painted on some of the letters.

“It something that just kind of gravitates to people and it has a unique way to connect with them,” he said.

Connecting to Latino voters is important to the Arizona Harris-Walz campaign, so they wanted to represent that through Garcia’s mural. Garcia was also hired in 2020 to do a mural for the Biden-Harris campaign.

“Build that relationship with the working class,” Garcia commented on how his work connects with the Latino community.

Yosi’s Creations and Flower Shop is owned by Leticia Dominguez and is where the mural is located. She allowed the campaign to paint it on her wall.

“Everyone has their right to expression and well, this is our position…that we’re with Kamala,” Dominguez said.

She said she has already started noticing people taking pictures by it and is hoping it's a reminder for them to vote on Nov. 5.

“It can help because a lot of people don’t pay attention to voting. It’s really big, it’s very visible,” she said.

Rowan Al-Bialy, an assistant professor of marketing at the University of Arizona, said political advertising is most effective with undecided voters. She also said political art like the Obama “Hope” art piece is a powerful tool in nudging people towards voting for candidates.

In Midtown, the Arizona Harris-Walz campaign paid another artist for a mural that says “Kamala”.

Located on Speedway, it faces the new boba and tea business Brucha. Andrew Le just opened up the shop about a month ago and said the mural was completed recently.

“Hearing that it was going to be a political ad, we were slightly concerned that that would have a negative impact for our guests and the store,” Le said.

He said they would not have preferred any political statement facing his business, whether it was for the Harris or Trump campaign.

He also said guests have asked about the mural, so he put up a sign near the cash register expressing they are not affiliated with the mural. He said the business has not been impacted by any difference in customers.

“We want to let the public and our guests know that we are not affiliated with either party or candidate,” Le said.

Donald Trump has also used a unique way of reaching voters through social media. A Trump campaign advisor said Trump’s Tiktok account, his Team Trump campaign’s account, and associated hashtags have gotten over 10 billion views.

He’s also appeared on several popular podcasts with popular hosts like Logan Paul and Bussin' with the Boys, utilizing influencers and popular content creators to elevate his platform.

Overall, with the election cycle ending, Le said he’s hoping there’s a new mural coming soon.

“We hope that after the election is over that a more relevant kind of artwork gets put up,” Le said.